IX Power Clean Waterhttp://ixwater.com
From the end of the world, to your town.Thu, 16 May 2019 18:36:57 +0000en-US
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1 https://wordpress.org/?v=5.2.1The Colorado River Basinhttp://ixwater.com/the-colorado-river-basin
http://ixwater.com/the-colorado-river-basin#respondThu, 16 May 2019 18:36:57 +0000http://ixwater.com/?p=1094

Colorado got a good bit of snow this winter, and that has helped build the snowpack in the Colorado River Basin. The most recent monthly study by the Bureau of Reclamation revealed that the snowpack in the Basin reached 130% of its average, which is not only good for Colorado, but for the other six states that take water from the river. Lake Powell and Lake Mead will also benefit from runoff. Lake Mead is projected to rise to 128% of its normal level.

While this is certainly positive news to the 40 million people who use water from the Colorado River, federal officials are far from jubilant; they emphasize that a 20 year drought cannot possibly end after a single wet year. The Colorado River system storage is only at about 45% of full.

Vaccines have been in the news quite a bit since the measles outbreak has hit cities across the USA, but their effectiveness is rarely a point of curiosity.

PFAS and PFOS are also often in the news, especially in the state of Colorado, where the Environmental Protection Agency has announced plans to study PFAS and PFOS – per- and polyfluorioalkyl substances – found in drinking water around the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. They have also been found in people’s bloodstreams around the world at levels that drastically exceed levels deemed healthy.

What do the two have in common? In a study in 2012, it was reported that children who had higher PFAS and PFOS levels in their blood were less able to develop the antibodies that make vaccines effective.

PFAS and PFOS are known as “forever chemicals” because they persist in the environment – as well as in life forms across the planet. They are immune to degradation and do not seem to break down naturally over time.

The chemicals enter the environment in countless ways, including from landfills where stain resistant carpets and other textiles break down and leach into soil and water. Because of their water solubility, they leach into soil easily and can travel staggering distances, even as far as Antarctica.

]]>http://ixwater.com/water-and-vaccinations/feed0Produced water – mass mediahttp://ixwater.com/produced-water-mass-media
http://ixwater.com/produced-water-mass-media#respondFri, 12 Apr 2019 16:58:26 +0000http://ixwater.com/?p=1060Those who study and work with produced water know that their information is limited, and that knowledge is power. A director with the Environmental Defense Fund said, “There are significant gaps in our ability to detect the chemicals, knowledge of their toxicity and therefore our ability to protect resources and limit their release through regulations.”

To address concerns such as these, a conference was held at the Permian Basin in late February. To learn what was discussed, read:

LIke most thoughtful people, we at IX Water recognize that our modern quality of life is a direct result of the exploitation and use of hydrocarbons. We are not “pro oil,” we are pro life and recognize the value hydrocarbons play to almost everyone on Earth until we can make a global switch to a better fuel and source of raw energy. But we also know we can always do better in terms of the impact the oil and gas industry and it’s use has on natural and built environments and the life that inhabit those environments.

]]>http://ixwater.com/colorado-oil-gas-industry/feed0Don’t accidentally set your car on fire!http://ixwater.com/dont-accidentally-set-your-car-on-fire
http://ixwater.com/dont-accidentally-set-your-car-on-fire#respondMon, 11 Mar 2019 16:56:47 +0000http://ixwater.com/?p=589Well, I didn’t believe it at first… but then I saw the video. I guess a water bottle left in a hot car can actually set a car on fire!

Water and the treatment of Women (and other disadvantaged peoples) – they are at the intersection of the world’s most pressing issues. The IX Power companies have dedicated their corporate missions to helping improve the future of both.
Let’s just address one part of the situation to start putting the whole picture in perspective.
In 80% of households without close access to water, the responsibility falls on women and girls to fetch and carry it. Around the world, females spend 200 million hours per day getting and water for their households. In poorer nations, they walk an average of nearly four miles per day for it. The time and energy used to access clean water perpetuates the cycle of poverty. Hours spent retrieving water means hours not working or studying. A study in Tanzania showed a 12% increase in attendance when water could be found within 15 minutes of more remote villages.
A further concern is the danger involved. In areas like Yemen, Syria, Iraq, and the border between Afghanistan and Iran, water is not only a source of discord, it is dangerous for women to make the trek to water sources each day. In addition to potential conflict between factions, there are risks of physical or sexual assault. Fetching water may, in fact, be truly dangerous. There is also the physical toll of carrying water. Jerry cans are used, each of which holds an average of five gallons and weighs 40 pounds. Women most often carry those containers on their heads, leading to serious injury to neck and spine, made worse when carried by young girls.
There are organizations that are trying to help these women. Concern Worldwide is one. They have a program that builds wells and boreholes in remote areas. They also ship water to areas stricken by drought. There are also a number of organizations that focus on bringing water closer to impoverished areas. Information about those can be found here: https://buff.y/2RHcqeQ

]]>http://ixwater.com/water-and-the-treatment-of-women/feed0Treating Water to Alleviate Waterborne Illnesshttp://ixwater.com/treating-water-to-alleviate-waterborne-illness
http://ixwater.com/treating-water-to-alleviate-waterborne-illness#respondTue, 08 Jan 2019 08:33:58 +0000http://ixwater.com/?p=663Schistosomiasis kills between 25,000 and 200,000 people per year in some poor areas of the world, including but not limited to: the Democratic Republic of Congo, Brazil, Venezuela, and parts of the Caribbean. There is little research being done on it, and few medications available to treat it. In fact, it is so overlooked that people who have it often don’t know for many years. While tiredness and muscle aches are among the early symptoms of schistosomiasis, it can eventually affect blood circulation. As worm eggs spread throughout the body, major organs can become damaged, possibly to the point of death.

It is a parasitic infestation caused by flatworms penetrating the skin of a person simply walking, or swimming in infested water. The worms are hosted by some freshwater snails; the worms do not live in salt water. According to the Center For Disease Control, improved sanitation through water treatment might reduce or even eliminate transmission of the disease.

What is needed is a system for treating water that is inexpensive, minimizes waste, and is cost-effective.

Trophic rewilding is the reintroduction of species that have become extinct in specific areas, and it may be one way to mitigate the effects of climate change.

Ecologist Dr. Liesbeth Bakker of the Nederlands Instituut voor Ecologie has stated that loss of species drastically impacts environments in which they live. “If we are to restore nature, the role of these animals in the food web is crucial. One approach to obtaining a healthy food web again is by reintroducing missing species.”

One of the clearest examples of the benefit of trophic rewilding took place in the 1990s, when wolves were reintroduced to Yellowstone National Park. Putting them back into the environment had such impact that it reduced the erosion of river banks by decreasing the population of deer and elk. When wolves were killed off in the 1930s, populations of deer and elk grew to the limits of Yellowstone’s capacity. Herds did not move around the park as much because they were not being chased by wolves; they tended to stay somewhat stationary, eating down young, healthy aspen and willow trees, as well as cottonwood plants. This had a negative effect on the beaver population, as beavers need willows to survive winter.

When wolves were released into the park, elk and deer populations were naturally made to move more. This allowed trees to flourish, which invigorated the beaver population. The naturally occurring reintroduction of beaver has actually helped make groves of aspen and willow become healthier, which has increased songbird populations, as well as recharging the water table, which has helped increase the fish population.

Dr. Bakker and Danish researcher Jens-Christian Svenning have published data from researchers all over the world, supporting Dr. Bakker’s findings. The article is published in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, a biweekly, peer-reviewed scientific journal published by the Royal Society. The article provides data that highlights the need for biodiversity around the world.

A lot of the world is chronically short of water, but sometimes there is a problem with having too much. September, 2018 was the wettest September on record in Texas, and heavy rains last week have led to catastrophic flooding in the central part of the state. Such heavy rainfall has led to much more debris, silt, and mud in the water than usual, which has slowed down output from water treatment centers. According to National Public Radio, the water flowing into aquifers looks like chocolate milk. Residents of Austin have been told to boil tap water for at least 3 minutes to be sure it is safe to drink and to use less. In Austin, the water supply comes from the Colorado River and is stored in aquifers, then cleaned in water treatment plants before flowing to homes and businesses.

Because of the extra filtration needed, Austin is using more water than is being released from treatment plants. Officials in the city are urging residents to use at least 15% less water to allow the plants to catch up. As reported on CNN, “‘Immediate action is needed to avoid running out of water,’ Austin leaders said Monday in a statement. ‘Emergency conservation now required.’”

NPR reports that with cooperative weather, the situation could improve in a few days. If heavy rainfall continues, though, the current course of events will continue until the rains stop.

Since 2015, The US Water Alliance spends an October day raising public awareness of the importance of clean, safe water in our daily lives. It is difficult to imagine, in modern America, not having an ample supply of clean, safe, inexpensive water always at the ready. But, as neglected infrastructure throughout the country ages and deteriorates, access to clean water becomes more limited – not all at once, but small area by small area. Flint, Michigan is a highly publicized example, but similar water quality crises are occurring all over the country, many in rural locations without media outlets to bring attention to the impacts on the affected communities.
Almost all of the freshwater on the planet has always been here – it’s only 2.5% of the water found on Earth, and most of that is inaccessible because it is frozen in glaciers or snowfields. What comes out of our taps today has been here since before homo sapiens existed. It has been recycled through evaporation and precipitation, but it has always been here. Explosive population growth places ever increasing demands on this finite supply. Around the world today, in the 21st century, 900 million people do not have access to safe, clean water.
Imagine A Day Without Water is an effort to help people understand what will be in store if America’s water infrastructure is not maintained and modernized.. The concept of not being able to get a glass of water in the middle of the night, or take a shower in the morning is difficult to fathom.
The U.S. Water Alliance began the Imagine A Day Without Water campaign to encourage people to think about what life would be like without access to water.
To become involved in Imagine A Day Without Water, go to https://buff.ly/2Ajhh0t.
For more information, go to the blog on ixpower.com
Sources:https://buff.ly/2NB6t61https://buff.ly/2Ak8kEp